Limitation
by Two Guns and a Knife
Summary: The clueless heroine made a life changing plan and took a trip to Hawaii with someone.  But, as usual, things didn't happen according to her original plan.  And it turned out that the Man of Mystery was not the only one who had limitations.
1. The Walk Away Groom

It was planned to be the Burg wedding of the century. The man who owned the best ass in Trenton and the woman who blew up cars were finally going to tie the knot after all they had put everybody through. It looked like God himself approved of this marriage. The weather was more than perfect. The flower arrangement was magically elegant. The cello and the organ were skillfully played in harmony. The church was crowded with excited but surprisingly well-behaved guests. And for once the grandmother of the groom was not trying to put the Eye on anybody, while the mother of the bride was all smile and just a tiny little bit tipsy.

The family and friends of both parties gave a collective "Wow" as the tall, dark and extremely handsome groom walked to the alter with a enchantingly dazzling smile on his movie star face. Minutes later, the bride showed up in a lovely yet sexy creamy wedding dress. The quests dutifully wowed again as if they had never seen a more beautiful bride. Just as she was about to walk down the aisle to the man who had fingered her in his father's garage when she was but six years of age, there came a crack of thunder right above the church, barely after a flash of lightning penetrated the stained glass windows and hit the bride in her head. She crumbled to the floor, twitching, frothing and convulsing uncontrollably for a few second and became still.

All Chaos broke loose. Men and women shouted for help or screamed in terror, the big orange drooling dog standing beside the groom howled, and the hamster in the glass aquarium held by the bridesmaid screeched**. **Quite a few guests from the Police, Fire Departments and EMT, along with the bride's father and close friends rushed to her side. Her mother gave out a shrill "Why me?" and fainted in her grandmother's arms. About a dozen people called 911. Twenty-five people went down on their knees and prayed. Fifty-nine people Twittered, Facebooked, and/or took pictures with their cell phones. The rest simply stood on their toes waiting in excitement. Nobody noticed that the groom just stayed where he was, looking down at his shining brand new black shoes the whole time. His mouth a grim thin line.

"That's it," He said loud and clear through clenched teeth, attracting everyone's attention. "I've have had enough."

And than he walked out of the church without a backward glance. His family and friends froze in shocked silence, gaping at what was taking place in front of them. His mother grabbed her mother-in-law by the elbow and stumbled to follow the pride and joy of their clan. Her other family members quickly took their leave in hushed silence. The majority of the groom's colleagues stared at his back in stunned disgust and disbelief. Some of them tried to go after him, but were stopped by the unconscious bride's father.

"He's not worth it," The older man said calmly, holding his daughter's hand with both of his. "I've have had enough of him too."


	2. Pele, the Mother of Volcanoes

15:10

He let out a sigh. The little black lava stone was finally returned to the volcano. Hopefully soon his world would be back to normal.

15:11

The woman he loved in his own way was hit by lightning at her own wedding. Inside the church.

15:17

The man she had chosen to marry walked away from her unconscious, limp body and out of her life. Permanently.

15:29

The victim struck by lightning arrived at the ER of the nearest hospital.

16:23

The doctor announced that her condition was not life threatening. She was now stable and expected to make a full recovery in due time .

16:29

He closed his eyes and fought the urge to put his head in his hands after ending his conversation with his second-in-command. Someone had once declared that he was so tough that not even a nuclear holocaust would make him bat an eye. He had every intention to uphold his reputation. Even in private. Time to go home and plan his next move.


	3. Open Your Friggin Eyes!

She woke up with the grandmother of all headache. _Yes, excessive alcohol three days in a roll would do that to you._ Said a stern little voice in her head. She buried her face in her pillows. She didn't want to listen to her ever-so-right-on consciousness**. **She didn't want to think. She didn't want to move. She didn't want to open her friggin eyes to reality. Hell, she couldn't even find the reason to live anymore. The Rock had retired from wrestling and wore a tutu in a silly family movie. The Phillies got knocked out of the playoffs. Again. The NBA was gonna have a lockout. And now that rat bastard had had the nerve to walk out on her at their own wedding. After she gave him **FREE **round-trip airline ticket to Hawaii.

_Why was I so foolish? _she screamed to herself silently.

_Why did I let him sweet talk himself into my life and my bed?_

_Why did I trust myself to __a man who had molested me, taken my virginity and then publicly humiliated me?_

_That bastard even chained me naked to my own shower curtain rod...Oh my God! **Raaaaange...**_

She could no longer hold back the tears.

_What will he think of me now? _

_Will he still love me in his own way?_

_What if he doesn't want to have anything to do with me anymore? _

_What if I never get to see him again? _

_C_hoked by guilt, regret, fear and doubt, she started to hyperventilate. Only this time, there was no big, warm, firm hand on the back of her neck to push her head between her legs. There was no soft, deep, gentle, sexy, masculine voice whispering "Deep breath, Babe" in her ears. She wailed and wailed and wailed like a heartbroken banshee. She tore at her own hair, hammered her chest, tried all she could to rip the pain out of her heart but failed. She sank back down onto the bed when all her strength and tears were drained. She closed her eyes. Now she just wanted to die.

Outside the door of her old bedroom, her parents stood with arms around each other, tears pouring down their tired worry-wrinkled faces.


	4. Conspiracy

**_38 days before the Fateful Wedding*, in a motel room on Route One _**

They both agreed his on-again/off-again girlfriend was extremely lucky. No matter how careless, impulsive and unprepared she was, she always managed to survive whatever disaster fate sent her way and get her man.

"I just wish I could knock some sense into her stubborn head and make her quit her job." He ran a hand through his hair and blew out a sigh of frustration.

His long-time partner gave out a bark of laughter. "You and I and the whole Trenton know that's not gonna happen. Ever."

What left unsaid was that she would never give up being a bounty hunter when the best man in business was always around offering her guidance, support, protection and unlimited supply of shining black cars.

"Maybe you can make her change her mind by counterbalancing her luck." His partner said jokingly after a moment of silence. "I came across an interesting article the other day. It was about some cursed lava stone of a Hawaiian Volcano that brings incredible bad luck. You see, if somebody gives her the stone without her knowing its true purpose and it does work, she won't be so lucky anymore. Once her luck is gone, I'm sure she'll soon see the danger of being a bounty hunter and learn to fear..."

"And then all I'll have to do is popping up like a knight in shining armour and sweep her off her feet." He interrupted with a devious grin.

"And remember to get rid of the stone after your wedding."

They started laughing gleefully.

Three days later, he received a present from his bounty hunter girlfriend. It was a round-trip airline ticket to Big Island, Hawaii.

_* Remember the wedding at which all hell broke loose? It was now officially acknowledged by the local press and the general public as **The Fateful Wedding**. _


	5. The Mafia Barbie

_**11 hours after the man who had the best ass in Trenton* received the free airline ticket to Hawaii, in another motel room on Route One **_

They had both tried to make a life outside of their hometown, failed, and came back eventually. It hadn't taken long for them to pick up where they'd left off. But now there was nothing personal between them. It was just too inconvenient for an ambitious police detective to get involved with an active member of a famous mob family. And vice versa. They had become more partners from different parties than old friends in the past few years. In other words, they were just using each other to get their jobs done.

The cold-eyed blonde frowned at the cop as she handed over the gossip magazine in which she had read about the cursed lava stone. "You know I was only joking, right?" She knew instinctively he was planning something. He was not a superstitious man. Why all this sudden interest in the cursed stone? A chill crawled down her spine as she thought about what a coincidence that he got the free ticket to Big Island.

He smiled his charming smile and assured her that he was just curious and thought a trip to the National Park of Volcanoes might be fun. She knew him too well to buy it. She wasn't friends with his girlfriend, but she didn't want to see anybody get hurt because of her joke. Hey, she might be the Mafia Barbie, but she was still Catholic. She would keep an eye on this. And if anything weird happened to that brunette bounty hunter in the near future_,_ she knew just the right person to call.

* Yes, we all know that's so totally untrue. The whole world knows that title belongs to the Man of Mystery!


	6. The Optimist

**_The day before the trip _**

_The old woman with short red hair forcefully pushed her toward a familiar two-story house and chanted non-stop in an authoritative voice, "Go back to him. You belong with him." She clenched her fists and struggled with all her might, but the old woman just kept pushing..._

She woke up covered in sweat and feeling sick. Goosebumps crawled all over her shaking body. It was that damn dream again. She first had had the dream the night she went back from visiting her gunshot-wound mentor with flowers and a birthday cake. Since then, whenever she had thought about turning her tedious on and off relationship into forever off mode, the dream would come back to haunt her. And a few days later, she would let the wrong man back into her life and her bed again.

It was as if this dream had some unknown power over her, like the Dark Lord's ring or something. It ruled her love, it ruled her life, it pulled her away from the man she truly wanted and bound her to the wrong one instead. But no, this time she would not make the same mistake again. She had made up her mind to break the "unhealthy pattern" and take her destiny into her own hands. She wanted a life with the man she was in love with, and she couldn't walk away without trying. And to do that, she needed to cut the wrong man out of her love life completely.

Everybody thought they were going to have a pre-honeymoon. Oh how wrong they were. She chuckled to herself. They were going to the most romantic place on earth not as a couple, but two individuals. They would fly to Hawaii together, stay in the same hotel, but in different rooms. When the time was right, they would have an honest and open talk in a peaceful and stress free environment. Without any intervention from their families and friends, they could part their ways without drama and hopefully start their lives anew.

He might be a little frustrated at first, but she believed the deep blue ocean and the lush green mountains of Big Island would soon calm him down and improve his mood. Then he would come to his senses and admit that they were never meant to be together. Who knows, maybe he will even find the love of his life in Hawaii! She smiled to herself. Even the only other person who knew about her plan thought it was "sort of" clever.

_She was sliding the dead bolt on her door into place when the idea __struck__ her like lightning. She sat down with her back to the door and thought it through. Then all of a sudden she felt the need to share her life changing plan with her mentor, and to have his approval and support. She took out her cell, told herself to be brave and called the man who happened to be the reason why she had been_ _avoiding intimacy with her on/off boyfriend after the Vordo._

_"Are you sure you really want to do this?" He asked softly._

_"Yes." She closed her eyes, imaging the almost smile on his face. "So don't panic when you hear we're going to the paradise for honeymooners, alright?" _

_"What if all the honeymooners and romantic atmosphere just make him angrier?"_

_"He will never hurt me, if that's what you're worried about." She smiled into the phone. "I've known him all my life. Well, almost. He's not that kind of person, he's too rational. He'll calm down after enough yelling and arms waving."_

_"We'll have to talk when you get back." Was the last thing he said before disconnecting._

_I'll never get a proper goodbye from him. She let out a sigh and flipped off the phone._

Everything will be alright. She told herself and went back to sleep.

Too bad she didn't know there was a fairly big hole in her plan: the man she planned to break off with had overheard her conversation at the other side of her door the other night.


	7. A Desperate Prayer

**_In a modest hotel room in Bid Island, Hawaii _**

He looked down at the small stone in his palm. He was not a superstitious man. But now here he stood, with a lava stone stolen from the National Park of Volcanoes in his hand, about to pray that a goddess's curse would help get his woman back. His cool and composed inner police detective had been trying to persuade him to get a grip, let himself be dumped and move on. _You deserve better than this_. _You deserve someone who is sensible and reasonable. Someone who has nothing whatsoever to do with fire, bombs, blown up cars, and one particular mercenary_. But his heart, or should he say his pride, just wouldn't let go.

He had came to her apartment that fatal day with a bouquet of roses and a bottle of middle priced wine hoping for a hot and steamy night, but ended up standing frozen at her door, feeling cheated and betrayed. He had been tempted to storm in her sorry excuse of a home to confront her, to yell at her, to cuff her to that rusty shower curtain rod and destroy everything she owned. But after taking a few deep breath, he had turned around, walked out of the building to his car and driven home. He had then made his plan that sleepless night. He would not allow her to drag him across the country and open sea to the paradise for honeymooners to make a fool of him. He would not become the laughing stock of the whole Trenton. He would not lose her. Not like this. Not to **_him_**.

So he had been on his best behavior ever since. He had been extra gentle, caring and supportive. A big genuine smile and excited wows when receiving the airline ticket, understanding nods after being turned down again and again for intimacy. He had always been good at acting innocent and hiding emotions. It was a necessity for any police detective. And just like the time he had held the Dick in protective custody, she had never once doubted anything. He wanted to ask her just how stupid did she think he was? Did she really think he would go down quietly without a fight? Hell, no. He wouldn't let her walk out of his life so easily. He would do anything to thwart her plan.

He had tried everything to win her back. But his sexiest smile and bad boy charm had lost their appeal to her. Even their heartwarming childhood stories and memories hadn't been much help. To make things even worse, whenever she spotted any tall, muscled native Hawaiian with caramel skin, silky black hair and dark brown eyes, her eyes went glazed while a sweet far away smile blossomed on her beautiful face. He knew they reminded her of **_him_**. And that made him crazy with jealousy. He wanted to hate her, to punish her, to make her pay for all the pain and every humiliation she had ever caused him. But he also wanted to love her, to own her, to make her the perfect wife in his dream. All the conflicting emotions raging through his already hurting head made him want to puke.

Now he was desperate. And desperate time called for desperate measures. Good thing he had thought about the possibility that the cursed stone might be his last resort. He closed his eyes and prayed to Pele, the goddess of Volcanoes. According to Hawaiian legend, whoever took a piece of lava rock away from the volcanoes would be punished severely by the goddess. Pets died, jobs lost and loved ones injured. He had no desire to see her harmed, but he really, really needed to be her knight in shining armour. "I do this for love." He said quietly as a sudden pang of resentment toward the woman who had caused him so much trouble tore through his heart. "If you want to blame someone, blame her." He told Pele. He was going to hide this little cursed stone amid her belongings, so she would be the one who took the rock away from Hawaii. And when whatever horrible things started to fall her way, he would be ready to sweep her off her feet.


	8. Will You Marry Me, Cupcake?

**_The last day of the trip, in the hotel lobby_**

They were going to leave for the airport in about an hour, and she still hadn't had the talk with him. _Where was all my courage when I needed it the most?_ She let out a sigh. She hadn't been feeling well ever since his return from the trip to the volcano, and this morning she had yet again woken up with a heavy clouded head. How could she talk to him about something that would make drastic changes to their lives when she couldn't even think straight for a minute? _Stop whining!_ She slapped her forehead in frustration. _That is no excuse!_ _You were just being a coward._ She knew she couldn't stall any more. No matter how unpleasant this conversation might be, what had to be done must be done. She would tell him about her decision when waiting for the flight home at the airport. Hopefully they would be able to find a nice place to sit, and have the talk over a cup of orgasmic Hawaiian Kona coffee. Yes, she would definitely need a lot coffee.

He dumped himself into a chair at the other side of the lobby and ordered his brain to think. He knew he didn't have much time left. He had always been the one who walked away. Never once in his life had he been dumped before, and he couldn't allow it to happen now. He fought hard to suppress the urge to strangle her with bare hands and cursed. How could such an ordinary, simple Burg girl mess up his life so much? All of a sudden, he froze, as if struck by lightning. _That's it! It's so obvious! _He laughed softly as he jumped out of the chair and marched to his destination. _She's a Burg girl, plain and simple_.

47 minutes later, just when they were getting ready to leave the hotel, he came over to stand in front of her with a most charming smile on his movie star handsome face. He took the Hawaiian sea glass ring he had just bought in the hotel gift shop out of his pocket, dropped to his knee, and proposed. The dozens and dozens of honeymooners, tourists and hotel staffs surrounding them gaped at the romantic scene unfolding before them, and burst into hearty cheering and clapping. "Say yes! Say yes!" They chorused**.**

Her mouth hung open like a dying mermaid, and, of course, no sound came out. Her mind went blank. She was stunned, scared and way beyond nervous. She didn't know what to do. All she could think of was that she couldn't embarrass and humiliate him in front of all these people. She could already hear her mother berating her for being so rude and inconsiderate. _But I can't marry him! I want to spend the rest of my life with the man I truly love! _Just as she mustered enough courage to tell him that her heart belonged to someone else, a monster headache came upon her out of nowhere and left her groggy and drowsy. Her world went black for a few moments. And when the light came back, he was there standing over her, taking her in his arms and kissing her. The crowd thundered applause and gave out wolf calls. She was feeling numb and panic at the same time when he released her and put the ring around her finger. She heart sank into an abyss of desperation as he pulled out his cell phone and called her mother.

She knew she was doomed.


	9. For Whom The Bells Ring

**_In an Italian deli in Trenton_**

"Oh, I am so happy for the both of you!" The local celebrity bounty hunter's mother cried out happily.

The shop owner, employees and customers alike snapped to attention and strained their ears to listen in to the phone conversation. So the Italian Stallion had finally snared his reluctant bride. Several old ladies chuckled and hobbled excitedly to encircle the bride's mother like vultures waiting for a hearty meal. Everyone else reached for his or her phone and started spreading the news right away. People in nearby stores rushed in to join the party. Mothers, grandmothers, aunts, cousins, godmothers, friends and neighbors of every respectable family, aka the pillars of the Burg, were called and gathered inside the deli filled with giggles, congratulations and words of advice.

Soon the groom's mother arrived. And the future in-laws started to plan the wedding. They found out the happy young couple were extremely lucky. There happened to be a last minute cancelled wedding (_The bride ran off to Vegas with the father of her unborn child. The groom was devastated. What a scandal_ ), so the church and the restaurant were booked immediately, and the wedding planner was happy to give them a handsome discount. Everything, from the flower arrangement, the cello, the organ, the wedding cake, and even the wedding dress was ready. Since there would not be enough time to send out invitations, the mothers decided to place a wedding announcement in the local paper. And they got a nice discount, too.

Amid all the excitement, a blonde woman walked out of the deli unnoticed to her blood red Ferrari. She took out her iPhone, braced herself and dialed a number. It was no easy task to inform a top notch mercenary the woman he cared deeply was going to marry someone else in less than three days.


	10. The Curse Breaker

**_In_** **_an apartment that had been firebombed too many times to its owner's liking_**

He walked into the empty apartment where he had last eaten a chocolate cookie and, many months later, been shot by a lunatic. The rich aroma of freshly baked cookies and the smell of gunpowder and blood were long gone, but every single detail of those two nights had already been branded into his mind and would remain with him till eternity. Lust and fear, passion and death, the sharp contrast between the events of the nights brought a half smile to his lips. His life had become more interesting ever since her appearance.

He ambled through the darkness into her small bedroom. Everything was a mess. Clothes and shoes and who knew what else were discarded and scattered everywhere. He turned on his Maglite and somehow managed to locate her still-packed suitcase in under 1 minute. He searched through the suitcase systematically and soon found what he had come for. The small lava stone was hidden inside a box of chocolates. So much for the legend of cops and their magical ability to plant small things like evidence. _This stuff could have killed you, Babe. _He shook his head slightly at the cop's stupidity. Luckily she hadn't swallowed the stone by mistake in dire need of a sugar fix. His gloved hand placed the lava stone inside a plastic evidence bag and sealed it firmly.

For a man of his age, he had been through and witnessed too much darkness and cruelty. He had also been to places where science failed and things beyond human comprehension happened regularly. His family was originally from an island country where witchcraft was not uncommon, and he had been taught that it was never wise to tempt curses. From what he had learned about this particular curse, the stone had to be returned to the volcano immediately. He started to put everything neatly back into her suitcase and got ready to leave when a faint whisper of her perfume came to haunt him.

_Why don't you just whisk her away and dump that stone in his house? _A coy voice asked him seductively. _You will have the girl, and the stupid cop deserves to be punished. _

No. Just as he didn't need handcuffs to enslave a woman, he wanted and needed her to choose and come to him willingly. She was a grown woman, an independent adult. She had the right to make her own choices and decisions. Besides, he had watched her run away and then go back to the cop for so many times that it disgusted him utterly. This unhealthy pattern needed to be stopped, but she had to be the one to do it. Now she had made her decision, and he would have to respect her will even if it pained him to watch her marrying the wrong man. But he couldn't bear to see her fall victim to the curse. She was already a magnet for disasters. He dared not image what would happen once unthinkable bad luck came her way.

_What if she made her choice not out of her own free will but under the power of the curse? _The voice asked persistently.

_Then I'll have to return the stone to break the curse_. He left as silently as he had come, and slid into the passenger seat of the black SUV that quickly headed to a nearby airport. There was no time to waste. He had a charter plane to catch.


	11. The Charming Groom

**_In the groom's waiting room at the church_**

It took everything in him to hide his anger and impatience behind the most enchantingly dazzling smile he could manage. And he had every damn right to be pissed. It had taken them more than 26 hours to get back home from the fucking hotel. And that meant he had had less than 25 hours to get ready for this stupid wedding. Luckily he only had had to rent a suit and buy a pair of shoes.

She had booked indirect flights and that cheap hotel to save money. So they had had to change planes for three fucking times for God's sake. The hours and hours of waiting had almost killed him. And she had been drunken the entire time. Thanks to her, now he knew just how painful it was trying to carry two carry aboard bags and one semi-conscious fiancée on and off the plane and stay awake in fear of missing the flight home in unfamiliar airports.

_Is she really worth so much trouble? _His inner police detective asked nastily.

_Is it wise to_ _marry someone who apparently_ _does not want to marry you?_

_Didn't you hear her calling **HIS **name over and over again in her sleep on the fight home?_

_"Shut the fuck up!" _He roared and smashed the lamp on the small table to the floor.

"Is everything okay?" His brother and cousin stuck their heads through the door and asked worriedly.

He assured them there was nothing to worry about and closed the door of the small waiting room.

G_o ahead, waste your life away with a woman who will always love someone else. _The voice in his head laughed merrily.

_I bet she'll look at your children and wish they were **HIS**! _His own reflection in the mirror sneered at him.

He clenched his fists and was about to slam the mirror when there came a knock on the door.

"It's time." His brother called.

He ran his fingers through his hair and forced the smile back on his face. He could feel his anger bubbling like a volcano. _I'm gonna do this. _He told himself. _And it's gonna be good._

The wedding music started and he walked out of the small room without a backward glance.


	12. Here Comes the Bride

**_At the double door leading to the altar _**

Fear. Shame. Misery. Self-loathing. Despair. Guilt. Cowardice. Loneliness. A frightening urge to bang her head on something really, really hard.

Add "hangover" and "denial" to that equation, and you would get the empty-eyed bride who was currently standing in front of the double door feeling like drowning. She had snagged so many little bottles of wine from the flight attendant's cart when boarding the plane and, consequently, had been drunken before the plane was 3 feet in the air above Big Island. Everything after that had been a blur. She didn't remember the long wait to change planes her husband-to-be just wouldn't stop bitching about. She didn't remember how she had managed to get drunken all over again on the next plane and the plane after that. Hell, she didn't even remember saying yes to the man she was going to marry in 5 minutes.

The mob consisting of her girl friends had grabbed her and her luggage from Newark Airport, driven straight back to her apartment, allowed her a 20 minute shower and 6 doughnuts, and then rushed her to the bridal shop to try on the dress. It had been such a perfect fit that all the people in the shop had been unable to stop "Oh!" and "Wow!" and "Ah!". They had then marched her to the mall and find the perfect bridal shoes in the same creamy hue as the dress. The rehearsal and the dinner afterward had been another blur. And then she had woken up with her head pounding like a man-eating tribe's drum on the couch in her parents' home, in the morning of her wedding day.

She could hear the wedding music through the door. She was going to let the man who had always played an important part in her life put his grandmother's old wedding ring around her finger. Suddenly she wanted to tear the wedding dress off her body and run out of the church like hell. She wanted to scream at the top of her lungs and tell the world this was all a big mistake. She wanted to pick up the phone, dial that familiar number and summon Batman to her rescue. But before she could find her strength and courage to run to her love and freedom, the Burg Girl deep inside her chose to wake up at this moment.

_Your mother did not bring you up to do such things! _The Burg Girl berated her severely.

_What will people think if you turn your own second wedding into yet another a fiasco?_

_You have made your decision, now you have to learn to live with the consequences._

_How can you rob the happy, dreamy smile off your mother's face?_

_How can you bring further humiliation to your whole family?_

_Haven't you done enough damage?_

_Spending the rest of your life with him as a married couple will not be so terrible. You have lived with him before. The sex will be good. He has a respectable job, a steady income, a nice cozy house , and a dog you really love. And you do love him too, right?_

_Think of your poor mother!_

_Stop being selfish!_

And then she was swallowed in a sea of hopelessness and helplessness. No, she couldn't be so selfish. She couldn't do this to her family. She couldn't afford to disappoint her mother any more.

The wedding planner's assistant opened the door and smiled at her. "It's time."

"I have to do this." She whispered to herself and walked through the door, ready to become the wife of the man who had fingered her in his father's garage when she was only six.


	13. There's All Kinds of Love

She picked up the grocery bags and walked calmly out of the store. She could hear them resume whispering behind her back, but she didn't give a damn. She had to go home and prepare lunch for her broken child.

She parked the car on the driveway and went into the silent house. Both her mother and husband were out for errands and wouldn't be home for lunch. _Just the two of us, then_. She started to make her child's favorite dishes. It had not even been two days since the wedding and, amazingly, she had gotten used to the awkward smiles on her friends' and neighbors' faces. But the lost, sad look on her baby's face would still cut her bleeding and already broken heart into even tinier pieces. She put a generous piece of carrot into the glass aquarium on the kitchen counter and smiled as the little hamster rushed out of his soup can to enjoy his meal. Her mother and elder daughter had helped her clean up the messy apartment, but it seemed that her furry "grandson" and his mom would be staying with them for a while longer.

Half an hour later, her younger daughter came downstairs, ate up everything put in front of her in silence and went back up to her bedroom. She had been like this since returning from the hospital. She stayed in her bedroom crying for the most part of the day. She didn't want to talk to anybody. She didn't want to answer her phone. She didn't want to see her visiting friends and relatives. She didn't even play attention to her beloved pet. She was like a living dead. The only comfort to her families was she didn't lose her appetite. And her grandmother had found out that she had come downstairs late last night and looked out of the living room window longingly as if waiting for someone.

The mother put the soapy dishes back into the sink, washed her hands and came to stand in front of the living room window. Her eyes fell straight on the sleek black car that "someone" had loaned her daughter before her trip. Suddenly she realized whom her daughter had been waiting for, and she knew right away what she had to do.

She went upstairs into her baby daughter's room and wrapped her in a mother's warm embrace. Then she told her weeping child how sorry she was. She apologized for all the pressure and expectations forced on her child's shoulders. She apologized for her failure to keep her daughter safely away from the worst kind of men. She apologized for being so blind to her daughter's suffering. And she asked for her daughter's forgiveness. The child held her mother tight, lost in the warmth and love radiating from her mother. At the open door of the small room lit by gentle afternoon light, the man of the house put an arm around his mother-in-law and smiled at the beautiful sight in front of him.

Downstairs at the front door of the house, a huge, muscled young man clad in black was about to ring the doorbell. Inside the cardboard box he carried were 20 pounds of highest quality Hawaiian Kona coffee beans and a note that read "Babe".


	14. Determination and Decision

He was tempted to do a happy dance right here in the parking lot as he looked up at his daughter's smiling face and waved back at her. Her whole mood had changed the day her mother had talked to her. No more hiding in her bedroom. No more tears. No more sneak trip into the kitchen for her mother's whisky. No more staring into space without seeing anything. His whole family had been so relieved to see the spark of life returning to her eyes. And he knew he had to thank not only his wife but the young man who had sent those divine coffee beans and that mysterious note.

She had decided to move back into her apartment two days after receiving her gift. Since the scum still had her keys, he had arranged to change all her locks and insisted on buying the safest kinds for her. He would not take any chance. Not after almost losing her to a most freakish accident. Not after what the scum had done to her. He would try his best to protect his little girl. He waved at her for the last time and drove away. He decided to stop at the flower shop on the way home and buy a bouquet of his wife's favorite flowers. Maybe another stop at the bakery for his mother-in-law's favorite dessert, too, He smiled.

She stood by the window watching her father drive away. She was so grateful to have her family. They had supported her through this ordeal with unconditional love, helped cleaned up her messy apartment, and stuffed her refrigerator with her favorite food and cakes. Her sister and nieces had even filled a cupboard in her kitchen with hamster food and treats. And she was grateful to have him in her life, too. She sat on the couch and took the note out of her pocketbook. Her finger tip caressed the elegant handwriting longingly. _How did he know everything? _She shook her head in disbelief, still amazed at the timely arrival of the coffee beans.

She had fallen in love with the expensive Kona coffee beans at first sip in Big Island. But she hadn't brought any back with her. She had always known how dangerous it would be to fall in love with something, or someone, she could not afford. Her family shared her taste in coffee. Everybody, except her brother-in-law, had moaned at the first sip of the steaming coffee. She had shared the beans with them, and her father had told her to invite him over for dinner. She took out her phone but found out she couldn't push the familiar button.

_Stop being a chicken! Just press speed dial 1 and thank him for the_ _orgasmic_ coffee, _and then invite him to dinner. Aren't you dying to hear his voice? Don't you miss him? Don't you love him? _

Yes, she did miss him. She missed him so much that her heart hurt. She wanted to tell him what had happened. She wanted to tell him the wedding had been a mistake. She wanted to tell him he was the one she truly loved. But she was afraid. She was afraid that he would ask her why she hadn't escaped, why she hadn't called him or his men for help, why she had chosen to walk down the aisle, why she had wanted to marry the wrong man in her life.

_How can I tell him I caved and let the Burg Girl inside me take over? How can I tell him I went into denial and pretended life with a man I didn't love would be okay? _

Tears filled her eyes but she tried all she could to stop them from falling. No. She would not be a helpless crying baby again. She had made a lot of bad decisions and the worst mistake of her life. She was so glad the lightning had chosen to strike her and thus saved her from a fate worse than hell. Now, for the first time in her life, she would take her destiny into her own hands and fight for her love. Yes, she was ashamed of having being a coward but she would not hide anything from the man she loved. She would tell him everything he wanted to know. She would tell him the truth. The whole truth. Nothing but the truth.

With a determined look on her face, she grabbed her pocketbook, put a handful of hamster food into her furry pet's lair and rushed out of her door. She never noticed the man sitting in a familiar car across the street as she jumped in her shining black car and drove toward Haywood.


	15. Guarded

13:51

The muscled young man clad in black behind the wheel saw the car begin to follow the Cayenne. He started the black SUV immediately and followed them as his partner called their boss.

13:52

The ebony giant of a man threw the skip into the wall and answered the call from his friend and boss. He then barked orders to his men, jumped into a black SUV with one of them and drove away quickly.

13:58

The uniform cop walked out of the new doughnut place just in time to see _the Bride Who Lived_* drive by. It was good to see his wife's cousin back to the land of living again. He gave a hearty grin to the rapidly vanishing black car and was ready to take a bite of his third buy-one-get-one-free maple syrup doughnut when another familiar car rushed by. "Fuck!" He dropped the doughnut back into the box and started running to his blue-and-white.

14:09

The heavy gate to the underground garage slid open before she even slowed the Cayenne. She parked in one of his spots and blushed fiercely as her eyes fell on the Turbo**. She stepped out of her car, too busy resisting the urge to fan herself, and thus once again failed to be aware of her surroundings. She squeaked as she slammed into the shy giant she had once stunned. He looked down at her with an apologizing smile and ushered her into the elevator so quickly that she barely had time to notice the three other huge men in black wearing Kevlar vests. The elevator moved upward and stopped at the 7th floor. The doors dinged open and with one deep breath, she went into his door and waited.

14:16

He watched the monitor with calm, intent eyes. Another blue and white police patrol car arrived. Now the two uniform cops walked up to the car parked across his office building and talked to the driver. Then all of a sudden both of them drew their guns at the driver and started shouting. Soon the man was out of his car and face down on the pavement with his hands cuffed behind his back. Two more police cars arrived. The men was pushed into one police car, and his second in command walked across the street to talk with the police.

14:29***

He walked silently into his apartment and graced the woman he loved with his rare full-on smile. "Do you have a scar like Harry Potter?"

* * *

><p>*Yes, the local media can be very creative sometimes.<p>

** If you haven't yet read Book 17, well, let's just say something quite INTERESTING had happened in that car...

***Still have problem understanding the extremely tricky military time? Don't worry, a little math can help!

Take 14:29 for example:

14-12=2

14:29 = 2:29

2:29= two twenty-nine in the afternoon

Voilà!


	16. Confession

She gaped at him.

He walked over to sit down beside her on the couch and ruffled her hair with a playful hand. "Trying to trap a bumblebee, Babe?"

She was lost in his beautiful laughing dark brown eyes and totally forgot she was still gaping until she felt warm lips brushing against her ear whispering, "Close your mouth, you're giving me ideas." She snapped her mouth shut quickly and tried to gave him her best Burg Glare, but soon gave up because it was impossible to do a proper Glare when your face was on fire and images of a naked male perfection started flying through your mind. Besides, she was quite sure she would enjoy those ideas, and she herself had some pretty good ideas, too...Maybe she could start with pinning him to the couch, tearing his perfectly fit T-Shirt off his more than perfect body with her teeth and then ran her tongue.. **_Get a grip of your hormones! _**She yelled at herself and almost jumped out of her skin when a finger tilted up her chin. "Earth to Babe."

She took a few deep breaths to calm herself and tried her best to look as dignified as possible. She knew he was waiting for her to speak, but suddenly she was at a loss what to said to him. There were too many things she needed him to know, but she didn't know where to start. _Just start with the safest topic, like weather and coffee. Yes, just start with thanking him for the coffee_. She could hear her mother's voice instructing her. But somehow the words came out of her mouth had nothing to do with coffee. "You know Harry Potter?"

A perfect brow raised at her. "I watch news. And I have nephews and nieces." And strange as it might seem, some of his men actually loved that little wizard. He had also sent a whole set of collector's edition of Harry Potter books to his daughter as her birthday present. His only child loved to read. Just like him. "Julie likes the Boy That Lived, too." He smiled as her whole face brightened up. Facts and information about his personal life willingly given to her always had that effect on her. And he knew they would be safe with her. That was an important reason why he loved her. But there were things in his life he would never tell her. He needed to protect his loved ones from things too dark and too cruel for average, ordinary people to hear or imagine. He himself was far from average and ordinary, but sometimes he still found them too hard to bear. And he had been scarred, both physically and mentally. Most of his wounds had already healed, but he didn't know if the rest would ever heal.

He knew why she had come to him. He knew what she was trying to tell him. He knew she loved him, and he loved her too. He enjoyed his life as a single man. No nagging wife. No screaming child. No crazy in-laws to deal with. He still carried (at least) two guns and a knife. He was still not quite family material. He was not sure if he would ever wanted another marriage or more children. But now when he looked into her eyes, he knew he needed to have her in his life. He needed her love. He needed her trust. He needed the light and joy she kept bringing into his world. And he was an intelligent man. He knew just how and when to compromise. So he flashed his trade mark 200 Watt smile at her and waited. And he didn't wait long. Because the next thing burst out of the woman he loved was "I love you."


	17. Just Another Bad Loser

This city held no secrets, and it sure loved rumours. Everybody knew the names of the bars in which the Walk-Away Groom had been engulfing alcohol after the freakish incident. Everybody knew the Bride Who Lived had locked herself inside her parents' home crying her heart out. And nobody hid the sly knowing smile when talking about the arrival of a mysterious box and the poor girl's magical return to the land of the living. Now the model citizens and the pillars of the city could not help but snort at the arrest of the Walk-Away Groom in front of his arch rival's office building.

What was he thinking getting himself drunk and stalking the woman he had so heartlessly deserted?

What was he thinking pulling gun on fellow police officers and getting himself arrested like a two-bit criminal?

What was he thinking making an idiot of himself in front of his archenemy?

What will his poor mother think?

They texted. They phoned. They Twittered. They Facebooked. They knocked on neighbors' doors. They whispered in each other's ears. They exchanged meaningful looks. Everybody was so excited. Well, except the seething, half-drunk "two-bit criminal" who was now staring at the ceiling of his holding cell with angry, swollen eyes.

The uniform cops had dumped him inside and told him to sleep off his alcohol. He knew there would probably be no charge against him. After all, he had been drunken, and he was one of their own. Everyone knew the police always looked after their own. He slammed his fist into the dirty wall. He could barely contain the burning anger inside him. His mother had been coming over everyday with his favorite food and that was how he had learned about his ex fiancée's "recovery". But his mother hadn't told him everything. He hadn't heard about the mysterious box until last night in a dark corner booth in a bar. Everyone had laughed and joked about its incredible healing power and started betting on when its sender would sweep the girl off her feet and drive into the sun in that shining Porsche.

He had been so tempted to shot those idiots on the spot and drive straight to Haywood to kill that bastard, but had instead chosen to go to her apartment and soon found out she had changed the locks when his keys failed to work. He had then decided to drink himself to sleep with the bottle of whisky in his car and wait for her, and had woken up just in time to see her running out of the building to the damn Cayenne. He had known instinctively whom she had planned to see. At that moment, the little warning voice in his pounding head had started talking.

_Don't do anything stupid!_

_Don't forget why you decided to walk out of your own wedding!_

_Don't you remember the fear and despair you saw in her eyes?_

_Don't you remember how much you hated her for loving someone else?_

_Don't you remember the snicker of the guests when she fell on the floor?_

_Don't you remember how much you hate to be the laughing stock of the whole city?_

_Let her go._

_Just go home and move on._

_It's too late now. _

But he had disregarded the voice of his consciousness and followed her all the way to Haywood Street, watched her go to that bastard, and consequently lost his temper when been asked to leave. He put a hand over his eyes. He swore he would pay them back for the humiliation. No matter if he still loved her or not, no matter if he still wanted her back into his life or not, he would never let her go to that crazy mercenary. Just wait and see.


	18. Commitment and Compromise

"Babe." He said softly and gathered her into his arms. She rested her head against his chest, closed her eyes and started telling him everything. It took all her courage to cut herself open and show the man she loved just how stupid and cowardly she had been, and it hurt like hell. But she needed him to know why she had not run away from the wedding. She kept on talking in a tiny voice, and didn't noticed either the gentle hand that wiped away her tears of shame and regret or the tender lips that brushed against her hair. It was late afternoon when she finally finished. She tightened her arms around his waist, breathing in his heavenly scent and waited for his response.

He was about to speak when her stomach roared like a rabid lion. His whole body began to shake with silent laughter and she remembered what her father had asked her to do. "My father told me to invite you over for dinner. And thanks for the coffee beans, my whole family really loves them." Her smile faltered as he cupped her face with both hands and looked at her with intent, solemn eyes. She knew immediately he was going to tell her something she wouldn't like. And she was frightened.

She could hear her heart throbbing frantically as her vision began to blur. All of a sudden she remembered how many times he had witnessed her crawling back into another man's bed. What if this was exactly the reason why he didn't want a relationship with her? What was so terribly wrong with her? Why did she always choose the wrong man? First the Dick, now the Scum. She felt like she had been polluted, contaminated, and damaged. What if he was going to tell her he didn't love her in his own way any more? She began to hyperventilate.

A warm, firm hand settled on the back of her head and pushed her head between her legs. A gentle, masculine voice whispered "Deep breath, Babe." in her ears. And slowly she calmed down and looked at the man kneeling before her. "I love you." He held her hands in both of his. "I'm still not sure about marriage and children, but I want you to be a part of my life. I need you to be a part of my life. Do you understand what I am saying?" He asked her quietly.

She blinked. _He loves me... **He loves me**. _She blinked again and nodded dazedly.

He proceed to tell her about the arrest of her ex fiancé, and that it might not be a good idea for her to live alone in her apartment. Then he asked her to move in here with him for a while, because it would be much safer here, and he really needed to make sure she was safe. She nodded her consent, still unable to make a sound. He pulled her up with him, gave her a heart-melting kiss and walked with her toward his bedroom. He changed his tear dampened T-Shirt while she went freshen up in the bathroom. They would head out to her parents' home in 10 minutes.

He then made a call to ensure the cop would be locked up in a cell at least till tomorrow noon. He was a very smart man, and he was always prepared. His housekeeper had already cleared out a space and a few drawers in his closet. His men had been monitoring the cop's every move since the wedding. And he had been more than ready to deal with the drunken scum earlier this afternoon. But still he was glad the uniforms had saved him the trouble by arriving in time to drag and lock that drunkard away. Getting rid of a police detective could be messy.

And now his only worry tonight was how to stand clear of her crazy grandma.


	19. The Revenger

He stood in the cold, empty house shaking. He had been told to turn in his gun and badge. He was suspended for two weeks without pay for being a worthless drunkard who had seriously damaged the reputation of Trenton's Finest by drawing gun on his brothers in blue. None of his fellow cops had offered him any kind of sympathy and condolence. Most of them hadn't even bothered to cast him a glance. And the sudden silence in his favorite pizza place had almost deafened him. So he had wolfed down his late lunch and escaped back to his home only to find his cousin had taken his dog away. A pang of loneliness from nowhere grasped hold of his heart as he realized how much he longed to feel the big orange dog's warmth against his body.

He sank into his couch and held his head with shaking hands. _It's all their fault_. He thought through clenched teeth. _It's all their fault_. He went upstairs into his bedroom and threw into a garbage bag the few old T-Shirts and socks left by the woman who had caused all his trouble. After dumping the bag into the dumpster outside, he gulped down all the beer in his refrigerator in quick succession. His eyes burned with anger and disgust as he recalled the desperate look on her face the night the crazy bastard had been shot in her apartment.

_I'll make them pay. _He smashed all the bottles on the floor and went down into his basement with cold determination. They robbed him of his gun and badge. They thought they could humiliate him. They thought they could defeat him. They thought they could shatter his pride. _Guess what? They were wrong!_ He walked to a dark corner and pulled a brick away from the wall to reveal a hole. He was an experienced police detective, and he was always prepared. He thought smugly as his hand reached inside the hole on the wall. He then smiled triumphantly as his hand came in touch with the perfect tool for his revenge.

_I'll make them pay_.


	20. Life is Good

He leaned against the kitchen counter in his tastefully designed 7th floor apartment, watching the chubby hamster stumble off the wheel and rush to the organic strawberry dropping into its world from heaven. Life was good for both of them. The little rodent didn't have to live in that crappy apartment any more. The CEO of a steadily growing, successful security company had escaped the groping hands of a pink-cotton-candy-haired granny with the help of the woman he loved. And he had showed his gratitude by checking there was no lightning shaped scar on her beautiful body. His lips twitched into a barely-there smile. More than twice, of course.

Last night's dinner at her parents' was quite pleasant (if you discounted the part where Grandma had never stopped trying to break through her granddaughter's defense to get to him). Her mother had not once excused herself to the kitchen for a quick gulp of whisky, while her father had actually spent more time talking with his family than eating. Both of her parents had been relieved to know she would be moving out of her apartment to his secure building. He had been a bit surprised by her mother's new I-don't-give-a-damn-about-rumours attitude, but he liked it.

He walked silently back into his, no, their bedroom, looking at the peacefully sleeping woman in the king size bed. They had gone to her apartment last night after dinner and brought back the hamster and almost everything in her refrigerator and closet. Not two hours ago, he had come up for lunch and found her staring at all her belongings in their closet. "I have more than underwear and socks in your closet." She had told him dazedly. "Does that mean we are a couple?" So he had skipped lunch and showed her the answer.

Now his only problem was that drunkard.

The biggest problem when dealing with violent drunkards was they could be even more violent, unreasonable and unpredictable than rabid animals. And things could got trickier when the drunkard happened to be a police detective with a gun. He had thought the cop would move on as fast as possible without a backward glance. He had heard so many tales about how hard the cop had tried to escape the family curse, and never thought the highly praised police detective would have turned into a drunkard in a blink of eye. In his line of business, it was a necessity to maintain a good relationship with the Police. And the Police always looked after one of their own, even though it was someone who was a humiliation to them all. But he had been seriously tempted to risk everything and solve this problem in the quickest and most efficient way yesterday afternoon. He had been so worried the drunkard might finally lose it and shoot her that he'd instructed all his men to do whatever necessary to prevent it. In fact, he himself had been waiting for the right moment to put the scum out of his misery when the uniform cops had arrived. The only good news was: violent or not, all drunkards were slow and stupid because of the excessive alcohol in their system. And this one was no exception.

He looked at the faint burned scar on the love of his life's slender arm. He was an experienced warrior, the best in this business. He knew how to make the most of his enemy's weakness, and he would use it to his greatest advantage. He had taken care of the crazy mobster who had done this to her, and he wouldn't hesitate to do it again. He placed a feather light kiss on her lips and went downstairs to his office.

The whole city erupted in surprise and glee at 8:31 the next morning. The "Demented Stallion" had once again made the breaking news. Men and women snorted coffee all over their TVs, computers or the unfortunate people sitting right opposite. In the 7th floor bedroom in Trenton's most secure building, the only person unaware of the headline news kept on sleeping, entangled in her heavenly sheets. Downstairs in the 5th floor control room, the love of her life shook his head in disbelief. Fate did work in her own mysterious way.


	21. Cupcake

She refused to talk to the police.

She sat quietly in the interrogation room, both beautifully manicured hands folded on her lap, long brown curls shining and smooth, ocean blue eyes calm and sparkling. Her soft red lips twitched into an enchanting smile when her big shot criminal lawyer from Manhattan arrived. He held his tortured wife in his shaking arms and cried.

She too had lived on that quiet, peaceful street. She too had been lured into that dark smelly garage at the age of 6. She too had lost her virginity at 16, but on a patch of green grass behind the gym. She too had looked up in shock and disbelief. She too had heard her heart breaking into billions tiny pieces. But, alas, she had had no powder blue Buick to run him over at the age of 18. And she hadn't said no, at the age of 20, when he'd come to knock on her door.

She had left for New York City at 22, after he'd walked out of her life, again without either a decent goodbye or a backward glance. She'd soon learned to guard herself. She'd soon learned to live half alive. She had told no one else about any of this until she'd met her lawyer and married him at the age of 28. She had never been able to love him fully, even if she truly loved him. Because she too had felt like she'd been polluted, contaminated, and damaged.

"I am not clean," She had told him "No" the first time he'd proposed. "I'm already damaged."

But he had loved her, and still did, too much to gave up a future with her. So he'd made up his mind, against all reason and common sense, to challenge fate. And she had finally said "Yes" the 12th time he'd proposed. But they had no children. Because "it wouldn't be fair for anyone to have a polluted mother". He knew she was too deep in the grasp of sorrow and darkness that no therapy or counseling could help. But he also knew she loved him in her own way deeply, and would never give up on her.

She had come home for her mother's funeral and learned about the stories of the Walk Away Groom from the local papers and TV news. She hadn't slept at all last night, and had volunteered to buy doughnuts for her father and sisters first thing in the morning. She had stopped at a crossroad when the man who had been haunting her days and nights tumbling out of a bar. He had recognized and called her immediately. And she had run him over on the pavement with her bright yellow Ferrari.

She too had been called "Cupcake". Something soft, sweet, tasty, but cheap and easy.


	22. Duty and Dream

He climbed up the rusty fire escape ladder nimbly, smashed the bedroom window with the gun in his hand, and went into the dark apartment. Everyone had thought he would stay away after being warned by the Chief. But no, nothing could stop him taking his revenge. He sat on the crappy couch in the living room waiting. He smiled and caressed the gun dreamily. The woman who had ruined his life had left it in his car after a shoot-out murder outside the McDonald's more than one year ago. He had thought about throwing it away, but decided an unregistered gun might eventually come in handy. It had been given to her by that crazy mercenary, and that was the reason why he would use it to finish the job the Carnation killer had failed to accomplish.

Yes, he would kill her with it in her own apartment, hopefully in front of the bastard she was in love with. He couldn't wait to laugh into that stupid Cuban poker face and ask the one billion questions:

"_How does it feel to see the woman you love killed by your own gun?"_

His gleeful laughter echoed in the empty apartment. He couldn't wait to execute his perfect revenge. He could already see her bleeding dead body on the floor. _No one else can have her if I can't. _The lock on the door tumbled so he raised the gun and took aim. He waited and waited, but nobody came.

Then he heard the click of a gun's safety right behind his head. He turned slowly and saw the ocean blue eyes of a woman about her age. "Cupcake." He smiled. He remembered that face. One of the many who had visited the garage, one of his collection behind the gym. He tried hard but still failed to remember her name. But that was OK, because they were all his Cupcakes. His smile froze on his face as great pain and darkness out of nowhere swallowed him. He screamed but no sound came. He struggled but couldn't move. His eyes were open but could not see. All he could hear was a soft, crystal laughter.

"It's Mary, Joseph, don't you remember me?"

**The ER doctor shouted out orders as the car accident patient began to twitch, froth and convulse uncontrollably. They had gone to highschool together, but the scum who had stolen his girlfriend was no friend of his. Never fear, he would try his best to save this patient. Because that was his duty.**


	23. Babe

She woke up to a powerful urge to cook something hot, tasty and healthy and was scared stiff. It was only the third day she moved in with him, and now she wanted to cook him something nice already? What's next? Babies? Her heart was still beating wildly when the sudden piercing ringing of her cell phone made her jump and fall off the bed to the floor. "Turn on your TV!" The high, shrill laughter of her loyal friend and sidekick nearly deafened her. "The news channel!" Before she could asked anything, the phone went dead. Great, she had forgotten to charge it yet again. She dropped the phone on the bed in exasperation, rewrapped the sheet around herself and padded into the living room, yawned, remoted the 72" plasma TV on, slowly raised her hand to pinch her face really hard, and yelped. No. she was not dreaming.

**Joseph got run over by Mary. Emergency surgery. Possible broken limbs and spine plus severe brain damage. Bright yellow Ferrari. Cupcake. Manhattan. Victim of chronic depression. Famous criminal lawyer. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, you heard that right, Joseph got run over by Mary.**

The two news anchors kept on trying to talk, laugh and cough at the same time. The excited witnesses with ear to ear grins came on the screen next. Mary? She vaguely remembered the pretty, shy girl one year older than she. He called her "Cupcake" too? She sat down on the couch staring at the TV. Just how many Cupcakes did he have really? She shook her head half in annoyance and half in disbelief, and gave herself a head slap. _Thanks so much for being stupid enough to believe you are his one and only Cupcake_. She thought about slapping herself again but quickly decided against it. No, he was definitely not worth it. And it didn't matter any more.

She searched her heart quickly but thoroughly, and confirmed that she still felt sorry for the man she'd known all her life. She might no longer love him, not even as a friend, but she didn't want to see him get hurt. She too had been surprised by his sudden change into a drunkard, and to be honest, she couldn't help feel a little bit guilty about it. If only she had had the courage to just break up with him... Damn! She could have gone to Hawaii with her very own Cuban Sex God! She slapped her forehead so hard she almost fainted.

From what she'd overheard at her parents', she knew her father wouldn't hesitate to do her newest stalker some serious damage. And he hadn't been talking about broken nose and crack ribs, mind you. She'd almost melted into something warm and gooey upon hearing the man she loved telling her father he would do everything to protect her. And she knew exactly what he had meant by "everything". She looked down at the burned scar on her arm. The past 10 days had been quite an emotional roller-coaster ride for her. Amid all the twists, turns and mistakes, she had finally found the courage to confess her love and change her life. Now one of the two men in her life was permanently out of the picture, and the other had officially become the most crucial and inseparable part of her universe. And she wanted to cook for him, even if she knew nothing about cooking and might end up poisoning him. She never knew love could be so compelling and frightening.

She blew out a sigh, turned off the TV and walked into the kitchen. Her pet was too busy eating his fresh, beautiful strawberry to take notice of her. She lifted the lid on the plate on the counter and whooped and danced happily. Strawberry pancakes with maple syrup and banana slices! She took a huge bite and danced again. Whole wheat or not, it still tasted heavenly! She was about to lick the plate clean when two muscular arms slipped around her waist from behind.

"Do I have to move back into my apartment now?" Once again, words unauthorized and unapproved by her brain burst out on their own accord. Her heart and soul melted as the warm lips caressing her neck breathed out the answer.

"Babe."


	24. El Final

The car accident patient had been thrown into the air by the force of the collision, banged his head, and, unfortunately, snapped his spine when landing on the unregistered gun tucked behind his back in the waistband of his pants. The doctors had done their best but were still unsure when, or if, he would come out of the deep coma caused by severe and possible permanent brain and neural damage. The prosecutors had decided not to press charges against the young woman who was clearly a victim of emotional trauma and chronic depression. The statements from some of the country's best and most respected psychologists and psychiatrists who had evaluated and treated her confirmed her husband and lawyer's assertion. There was no need to waste tax money on a case that screamed temporary insanity. And needless to say, none of the prosecutors looked forward to fight in court against the man who was famous for eating their kind alive for a living.

Both the public and the police held no objection to this decision. The police was both happy and relieved that they had escaped another scandal when the media didn't continue to press on the issue of the drunken detective and his mysterious unregistered gun. The citizens were simply too busy eyeing their thirty-something female coworkers, friends and relatives, dying to know but afraid to ask if any of them were one of the many Cupcakes. Plus, everybody was still not sure who the real victim was here. And the big shot lawyer from New York did offer to help with the medical expense of the man who had ruined both his and his wife's lives, didn't he? So life soon went back to boring normal and moved on for most of the people in this city.

In the upstairs bedroom of the little two story house, the big orange dog came over and rested his head on the crying woman's laps. She wrapped her shaking arms around him and cried harder. She came here with the dog everyday after visiting her son in the hospital. She would first clean up the house and then wash, iron and fold some of her son's clothes. Oh how she wished she could turn back the clock. "_He is a boy." _her dead husband had laughed heartily the day she'd first found out about her son's trips to the garage. "_It is normal, it's no big deal." _Now she couldn't stop blaming herself for listening blindly to that seasoned womanizer and drunkard and choosing to look the other way all those years ago. On the bed, inside the pocket of a pair of newly washed jeans she had just finished folding, a rice-size black lava stone lay unnoticed. It had split off from the chocolate-truffle-sized lava stone the day the unconscious patient had prayed to the goddess of Volcanoes in his hotel room in Hawaii. The dog whimpered as he once again smelled something sharp and sulfuric. But his owner's mother just kept on crying.

Inside the gun range of Trenton's best security company, the man whose moral code stopped short of "Do not covet someone else's woman" flashed a 1000 Watt smile at his wide-eyed Eliza Doolittle. She had come into his office this morning and asked for his help to improve her skill with guns. And so far, after 1.5 hours' practice, she had finally managed to keep her eyes open while shooting. He had been planning to talk to her about sharpening her skills as a bounty hunter, and was extremely happy that she herself had thought about it and asked for his help of her own accord. Maybe he could persuade her to take some self defense lessons, one on one, with him, of course. He still remembered vividly the night she'd tackled him to the floor in her dark living room, if only they hadn't woken up her grandma...

"You're not planning to turn me into John Connor's* mom, are you?" She eyed him suspiciously. "I don't want to have six pack abs!"

He pulled her into his arms and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "I love you as you are, Babe."

**-The End -**

* The muscular Sarah Connor in **Terminator 2**.


	25. Bonus Chapter: Someday

**Bonus Chapter: Someday**

Everybody wanted a piece of her still breathing but unconscious son. His kidneys, his liver, his heart, his lungs, his pancreas, his small intestine, his corneas, his skin, his bones, the rest and every single piece of his still not dead body. The 40-something transplant coordinator had ogled at him like he was an extra juicy piece of mouth-watering meat instead of an alive human being. Organ Harvesting, yes, she remembered. That was what the business-like thin bald man had called it. He'd sounded so natural, so usual, so matter-of-fact and so...inhuman that she'd been having horrible nightmares ever since. She shivered and cringed a little as she thought of her dream the previous night. They were alone in the wilderness, laughing and walking hand in hand, and all of a sudden, a bunch of faceless people in white robes swarmed up and ate him up like vultures, locusts and hyenas. She was frozen unmovable on the spot. All she could do was screaming in extreme terror and crying her heart out.

She grasped hold of her son's hand and started to pray. Yes, she knew he was no saint. Yes, she knew he had made a lot of terrible, terrible mistakes and deeply hurt some people and destroyed their lives. And yes, she also realized it was politically incorrect or selfish or stupid or short-sighted to be against organ donation. But, honestly, she didn't care. She simply didn't see the point of killing a still breathing person in the name of "saving a lot of people's lives". This was her son. This was a life. All lives were equal. And no one had the right to play the role of the Almighty God to decide who should live and who should die.

Silently a drop of tear fell down Angie Morell's tired wrinkled face and as always she quickly wiped it away. _Tomorrow will be a new beginning. Tomorrow will be another day._ Bravely she told herself once again._ Keep on praying, don't give up. Medical science moves forward everyday. Who knows? Maybe tomorrow will be The Day. Maybe tomorrow they will find a way to wake Joseph up_.

_Maybe. _

_**Someday.**_


End file.
